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After an amazing time in Singapore it was time to get to my favourite city in the world: New York. Getting there was quite a pain in the ass. First I needed to catch a flight a 6am from Singapore to Tokyo, an 8 hour flight. Then I had a 2 hour layover, and then 12 hours to New York! As I previously mentioned I can’t sleep on airplanes, so it was quite horrible. Leaving Japan at 4pm and arriving in New York at 4pm messed me quite up. Fortunately Delta took good care of me. The food was eatable, the crew tried to smile and they had an extensive entertainment system (available in Dutch!). Can’t remember which movies I’ve seen, but I guess they were enjoyable (ooh wait, I rememberBegin Again, good movie that one).

But then finally, I was in New York! Unfortunately my ESTA had just expired so I needed to wait in line at customs for another 2 hours… Passport got stamped, luggage got collected and off I went, to Downtown Manhattan where I was staying. Thanks to the amazing website Couchsurfing I’ve met some wonderful people on one of my previous trips to New York. They are awesome, super welcoming and they have the coolest dog in the world.

After a well-deserved night of sleep my third adventure in New York finally started. As always I had no plan, except watching as much musicals as possible and visiting the new 9/11 museum. I just love strolling around this city, taking pictures. You see a lot off cool stuff happening in this city. Close to the TKTS booth at South Street Seaport (my daily stop on this trip) I came across some guys dressed up as sailors in a photoshoot.

Brooklyn Bridge

Brooklyn

Downtown Manhattan

FDNY in action

After that I went to the finished One World Trade Center. The Observation Deck wasn’t open yet (it is now) but I managed to get a free ticket for the 9/11 museum. This was really a special experience. The museum is a must visit, it’s an impressive place build with respect for the people who died on this horrible day. There’s one room filled with pictures of those who lost their lives and you can read the story of every single one of them. Quite emotional to say at least.

Finding Neverland was truly amazing. With an incredible cast (Matthew Morrison (that guy from Glee), Kelsey Grammer, Laura M Kelly, Carolee Carmello,…) the show is a must-see. They just released their Cast Recording, I have it on repeat for 3 days straight now. Strangely they were totally ignored at the Tony Awards…

In Singapore I visited the Marina Bay Sands Hotel and in New York I managed to arrange a private property tour in one of the best hotels in the city, Langham Place New York. The hotel is beautiful, the rooms have amazing views and the hotel even has it’s own Hairsalon. You can find the article I wrote (in Dutch) here.

On my last full day I decided to walk from Downtown Manhattan through Chinatown and Midtown to Central Park. It was a beautiful walk via all the major sights. Had a wonderful lunch at Vanessa’s Dumplings too.

The 95 million dollar Penthouse

After a couple of wonderful days in New York it was time to say goodbye and to head home again. The flight back to Brussels was fortunately a little bit more comfortable as I flew Brussels Airlines Business Class for the fifth time. The crew was nice, the food delicious and the flight smooth.

But yeah, New York is and will be my favourite city. I like it so much that I will go back in November, before heading on a roadtrip via LA, Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. Another trip to look forward too!